It took 10 months, but painful symbol of Quinn Butt tragedy finally removed

The grinding sound of metal tracks and the whine of a diesel engine mixed with the snapping sound of breaking wood Wednesday as an excavator flattened a notorious Carbonear home.

Ten months ago, the modern-looking bungalow on Hayden Heights the scene of one of the darkest moments in the town's history, but it took just minutes for it to be levelled.

• Demolition delayed for Carbonear home where Quinn Butt was found dead
• Fire-ravaged home where Quinn Butt's body found causing neighbours angst

Looking on was neighbour and Carbonear town councillor David Kennedy, relieved that this painful symbol of Quinn Butt's tragic death is finally gone.

Butt house torn down

8 years ago

Duration 0:37

The fire-damaged home in Carbonear where five-year-old Quinn Butt is alleged to have been murdered by her father last spring has been demolished.

"I know this is very tough on Quinn's family. I know this is tough on the Butt family," said Kennedy, "but once again this is just a sad reminder of this incident.

"(We need to remember) it was a home. It was somebody's house that they lived in. And it's just tough to see it destroyed like that."

Quinn's mother watches demolition

Trent Spencer Butt, 38, is accused of killing his five-year-old daughter in the house during the pre-dawn hours of April 24, 2016.

It's alleged he then set the house on fire.

Butt is awaiting trial on first-degree murder and arson charges.

The house remained standing — virtually untouched — until Wednesday morning, when the powerful bucket of an excavator began tearing into the roof.

A group of firefighters — most of whom responded to the scene last April — and some area residents watched silently as the house came down.

At one point, Quinn's mother, Andrea, pulled up to the scene in a car, stepped outside and snapped a photo of the scene.

She left without a word.

"I guess this is some closure for her," one of the onlookers said. 

The demolition was paid for by CIBC, the bank that carried the mortgage on the property.

The bank initiated talks with the town council to have the house removed in an bid to help the town "move forward," a spokesperson for CIBC said in a statement to CBC News.